Thursday, May 15, 2014

I would like to buy a vowel! #intersexawareness

Most people in our society understand the acronym LGBT and what it relates to (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender).  But is it missing something?  What about Intersex?  I would like to propose adding an "I" to LGBT.  This is not a new idea, and some organizations have already been going there, so KUDOS to them!  But as I had discussed before, the Intersex community are often 1) misunderstood, 2) under represented for various reasons.

The most inclusive acronym is LGBTQIA.  The website for the Tahoe Safe Alliance did an excellent job breaking it down.  At this point in time, when I did a internet search for LGBTQIA, a lot of them were for student groups or raising awareness at university.  But we need a overall society awareness of inclusion.  Here is what the Tahoe Safe Alliance has listed for what LGBTQIA means:

Lesbian – A female- identified person who is attracted romantically, physically, or emotionally to another female-identified person.
Gay – A male-identified person who is attracted romantically, physically, or emotionally to another male-identified person.
Bisexual – A person who is attracted romantically, physically, or emotionally to both men and women.
Transgender – A person who is a member of a gender other than that expected based on anatomical sex.
Queer – An umbrella term which embraces a variety of sexual preferences, orientations, and habits of those who do not adhere to the heterosexual and cisgender majority. The term queer includes, but is not exclusive to lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transpeople, and intersex persons, traditionally, this term is derogatory and hurtful, however, many people who do not adhere to sexual and/or gender norms use it to self-identify in a positive way.
Intersex – Someone who’s physical sex characteristics are not categorized as exclusively male or exclusively female.
Asexual – A person who is not attracted to anyone, or a person who does not have a sexual orientation.
Ally – A person who does not identify as LGBTQIA, but supports the rights and safety of those who do
http://tahoesafealliance.org/for-lgbqtia/what-does-lgbtqia-mean/

So in the future lets work together to be more inclusive and use LGBTQIA.  I know it's a mouthful, but it will be helpful to make sure everyone is included and supported, but also raise awareness to the intersexed community.

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